Startups

KC startups join Techstars, Amazon and Kickstarter to support net neutrality

By Tommy Felts / June 6, 2017

Amazon, Kickstarter, Etsy, Mozilla and other tech giants are planning a “day of action” on July 12 to oppose efforts to undo net neutrality regulations by Federal Communications Commission chairman Ajit Pai. As national momentum grows, the fight for a free and open Internet already has garnered local support.  More than a dozen Kansas City-area…

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Flyover Capital leads $1.5M round in Illinois startup

By Tommy Felts / June 6, 2017

Overland Park-based venture capital firm Flyover Capital has led a $1.5 million Series A round in an Illinois-based tech firm. Flyover led the investment round — which included Serra Ventures and other private investors — in Inprentus Precision Optics, which designs and manufactures X-ray and EUV diffraction gratings for “synchrotron radiation” facilities. The technology is used…

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Faster-than-expected visa process helps BLITAB relocate from Austria to KC

By Tommy Felts / June 6, 2017

Eight months after the Austria-based firm BLITAB won a LaunchKC grant, its co-founders have finally settled into their new home of Kansas City, Mo. BLITAB — a startup that developed the world’s first tablet for blind people — was the only internationally-based firm to win a $50,000 LaunchKC grant in September. But before co-founders Kristina Tsvetanova and Slavi…

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Meet Project UK, an accelerator helping entrepreneurs from underserved KC communities

By Tommy Felts / June 2, 2017

Project UK founder Quest Taylor was ecstatic Tuesday when he received news his accelerator earned funding from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. “It was a stamp of approval for the organization,” Taylor said of the accelerator, which was founded in early 2017. “I was not expecting to receive the grant. We really had to prove…

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ArtsKC launches new online guide to arts, cultural events

By Tommy Felts / June 2, 2017

ArtsKC is offering residents in the region a new digital resource that hopes to grow engagement at area arts and cultural events. On Friday, the regional nonprofit organization launched ArtsKCGo.com, an online guide that features information on art, music, theater, dance, film, festivals and other cultural events in the area. Already with hundreds of events…

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